The present invention relates generally to video recorders and more particularly to a video recorder which can be mounted on a vehicle for creating and recording images in response to a triggering event.
Video recorders which can be mounted on a surface of a vehicle for creating and recording images in response to a triggering event such as a sudden deceleration are well known and may be found in various types of vehicles such as automobiles, trucks and minivans. These devices are often mounted on a surface of the vehicle such as the windshield or the rear window or the rear view mirror or are constructed so as to be a part of the rear view mirror. These devices usually include a camera mounted inside a housing which either is fixedly or adjustably secured to the vehicle.
As can be appreciated, the camera in the video recorder should, ideally, be oriented horizontal relative to the vehicle, i.e. with the optical axis of the camera aligned with the direction of travel of the vehicle, regardless of the angle of the surface of the vehicle on which the video recorder is mounted. Windshields are generally at some acute angle which can vary by several degrees while other surfaces on the vehicle can either be vertical, horizontal or any angle between vertical and horizontal depending on the particular surface.
Some vehicle video recorders do not have any arrangement for varying the camera angle so that it will be horizontal relative to the vehicle while other vehicle video recorders provide some simple way for manually adjusting the camera angle.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,389,340 to G. A. Rayner there is disclosed a self-contained device for capturing video imagery in response to a triggering event which may include a mirror and be mounted to a vehicle windshield in place of a convention rear-view mirror. The device includes a housing in which the electronics and related elements of the invention are contained. These elements include one or more data sensors, at least one of which is an image sensor. Also included are a data sensor circuit and a capture circuit. The data sensor circuit responds to the triggering event, and may include data sensors coupled to vehicle systems such as a speedometer, tachometer, brake, turn signals or the like, or other data sensors such as an accelerometer or a vehicle position sensor. The triggering event may be, for example, a sudden change in acceleration indicative of an impending collision, or it may be a change in the signal provided by any such data sensor, including the image sensor. The capture circuit is coupled to the image sensor and captures a signal representing the video imagery by recording it in a digital memory, by transmitting it to a remote location, or by other suitable means. The capture circuit terminates capture of the signal in response to the data sensor circuit sensing a triggering event. The captured data thus describe circumstances leading up to the time of the triggering event. The data can be analyzed to help police, insurance or other investigative personnel understand those circumstances.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,813 to T. D. Scharton there is disclosed an impact triggering mechanism for a camera mounted on a rear-view mirror of a vehicle. The impact triggering mechanism provides a unidirectional mechanical output in response to inertial forces from any horizontal direction. Upon sudden impact or deceleration an inertia member connected to the camera depresses the shutter release button on the camera, which the button actuates the shutter in the camera and takes a photographic picture.
Other patents of interest are U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,464 to J. D. Woll etc. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,197 to J. L. Sordon, et al. It is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved vehicle video recorder.
It is another object of this invention to provide a video recorder which can be mounted on a vehicle and which includes a camera which is self leveling so that its optical axis can be made horizontal regardless of the angle of the surface of the vehicle on which the video recorder is mounted.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a video recorder as described above in which the camera can be locked in place within the recorder once the camera has been leveled with its optical axis horizontal.